Absorbent articles having defined core regions and chassis regions are supposed to have a comfortable fit about the wearer. For pant articles like pant diapers, sanitary pants and incontinence pants it is also desirable that the articles are capable of being pulled up and down over the hips of the wearer to allow the wearer or caregiver to easily put on and remove the article when it has been soiled. It is known to make such absorbent pants with elasticized stretchable side panels and waist portion, usually comprising elastic members, such as elastic threads, contractably affixed between the backsheet and the topsheet.
It is further known to make portions of the chassis of absorbent articles of an elastic material, such as stretch-bonded laminates. Such laminates may include a layer of meltblown elastomeric fibers which have been stretched and sandwiched between outer layers of spunbonded webs.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,552,245 discloses an extensible outer cover for an absorbent article which provides a certain permanent deformation when subjected to a tensile force. The extensible outer cover comprises a necked laminate in the form of one layer of a necked non-elastic film and one layer of an elastic film. The films may be breathable.
WO 03/047488 discloses an elastic laminate comprising an elastic film which on opposite sides is bonded to first and second non-elastic fibrous layers. The laminate is made by bonding the non-elastic fibrous layers to the elastic film layer and subsequently stretching the composite material, causing the non-elastic materials to break. The elastic film material may be of a breathable material. The laminate may be incorporated in an absorbent article.
US2003/0022582 describes a laminate in which an elastomeric film is bound between two or more layers of nonwoven webs. The laminate is said to be particularly useful in elastic diaper “ears” that can be stretched to accommodate variously sized wearers.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,627,564 discloses a laminate which is elastic in a machine direction and extendable but not elastic in a cross direction. The laminate comprises a nonwoven web that is extendible in cross direction and a plurality of elastic members laminated to the web, said elastic members are elongatable in the machine direction and bonded to the nonwoven web in space apart location while in a stretched condition. The laminate may be used as an outer cover in personal care absorbent articles.
Further examples of absorbent articles which in part are made of elastic laminates are found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,476,289 and JP 10043235.
International applications PCT/SE2004/001004 and PCT/SE2004/001005 refer to absorbent articles comprising an outer coversheet in the form of an elastic laminate having improved cloth-like feel and puncture resistance.
However there still exists a need for pant type absorbent articles having a chassis region comprising an elastic laminate having good strength properties, comfort, fit and soft feel as well as a cloth-like appearance. One problem occurring is that the elastic laminate breaks when the wearer or caregiver pulls up the pant.